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Booking opens 24 September! |
Brussels, Breda, Cologne ► Munich, Innsbruck, Verona, Venice
On certain dates in February & March 2025. open-access train operator European Sleeper (www.europeansleeper.eu) will run a sleeper train linking Brussels, Breda, Venlo & Cologne with Munich, Innsbruck, Verona & Venice via the scenic Brenner Pass. There's an easy connection from London to Brussels by Eurostar. This is in addition to their regular all-year-round 3-times-a-week sleeper from Brussels & Amsterdam to Berlin, Dresden & Prague.
What are the
5-berth couchettes like?
What are the
6-berth couchettes like?
Tips: Luggage, bikes,
pets, where to wait
Wake up to the scenic route &
watch the videos
Indicative train times: Runs on dates shown in Feb & March 2025
You can in theory take the 15:04 Eurostar from London, but with no wiggle room if the sleeper is retimed earlier at short notice. I recommend booking the 13:01.
How much does it cost?
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London to Brussels by Eurostar starts at £52 one-way or £78 return in Standard, £97 one-way, £140 return in Plus (1st class).
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Brussels, Antwerp, Rotterdam, Utrecht to Munich, Innsbruck, Verona, Venice:
From €99 in a shared couchette compartment or €179 in a shared sleeper.
All prices per person per berth. Fares vary like air fares, so book ahead.
Children under 4 travel free, without their own berth. Children under 12 travel at a child rate.
How to buy tickets
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Book the sleeper at www.europeansleeper.eu.
Booking opened on 24 September 2024.
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Book the London-Brussels Eurostar separately at www.eurostar.com.
By all means book an earlier Eurostar outward or a later one on the return, if this has cheaper fares available or if you'd like more time between trains in Brussels. Booking opens up to 11 months ahead. You print your own ticket or can show it on your phone.
What's the sleeping-car like?
The train has a sleeping-car, instantly recognisable by its American-style fluted stainless-steel body. 80 of these cars were built in 1954-56, originally with 20 small upper & lower single compartments, named the P type after their designer Albert Pillepich of the famous Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits. A number of P types were completely rebuilt in the 1990s for the Austrian, Belgian & Dutch railways with a more conventional 10-compartment layout and were reclassified AB30 (AB = 1st & 2nd class, 30 = 30 berths).
The sleeping-car has 10 compartments, each can be sold as 1, 2 or 3 berth with upper, middle & lower berths folded out as required. Luggage goes in the large recess over the door to the corridor or over the window. The compartments have normal locks and a security deadbolt which can only be locked & unlocked from inside. There's a washbasin, soap, towel, complimentary slippers and all necessary bedding including a very comfortable duvet. A bottle of drinking water is provided for each passenger. Morning tea or coffee and light breakfast are included in the fare. There are two toilets at one end of the corridor.
The Man in Seat 61 says: "I have a soft spot for these venerable sleeping-cars. They're old but comfortable, and with only 10 compartments not 12 in a 24-metre car they are relatively spacious by European sleeper standards. It's true they can be temperamental, they like the German power supply better than Belgian or Dutch, you may find the water pressure and air-con better on the German side! With friendly staff, comfortable beds and breakfast included it's a great way to travel."
Tip: If you find the sleepers fully-booked (they sell out first), a private compartment in a 5-berth couchette car makes a decent alternative.
The stainless-steel sleeping-car on the European Sleeper. Click the interior photos for larger images.
What are the 5-berth couchettes like?
Comfort 5-berth couchettes are in newer air-conditioned cars originally built for German Railways in the 1990s. Each of the 9 compartments has 5 berths, upper & lower on one side, upper, middle & lower on the other. The extra cost over 6-berth couchettes is well worth it for more space in a more modern couchette car.
Each berth is provided with a clean sheet, blanket & pillow. There is a toilet and 1 or 2 washrooms at each end of the corridor. The compartment door has a normal lock and a security chain. A bottle of drinking water is provided for each passenger and you can buy snacks & drinks from the train staff. A light breakfast with tea or coffee can be added to your booking when you buy tickets or bought from staff on board. Compartment windows open, one or two corridor side windows also open. Couchette compartments are not segregated by gender as you do not normally get fully undressed, but women can book a berth in a ladies-only compartment. See couchette car numbering plan.
If you want sole occupancy of a whole 5-berth compartment for 2-5 people, you will see a price for a private compartment when you book. If you find the sleeping-car fully-booked, sole occupancy of a 5-berth couchette compartment is a decent alternative.
Above, the inaugural European Sleeper departure waits to leave Prague on Tuesday 26 March 2024. Click the interior photos for larger images.
What are the 6-berth couchettes like?
Standard 6-berth couchettes are in older cars without air-con, originally built for Slovakian Railways in the 1980s. Each car has 9 compartments, each compartment has 6 berths, upper, middle & lower on each side. European Sleeper hope to have enough of the newer 5-berth cars to phase these out by 2025.
Each berth is provided with a clean sheet, blanket & pillow. There are toilets & washrooms at the end of the corridor. The compartment door has a normal lock and a security lock or chain. Couchette compartments are not segregated by gender as you do not normally get fully undressed, but women can book a berth in a ladies-only compartment. A bottle of drinking water is provided for each passenger and you can buy snacks & drinks from the train staff. A light breakfast with tea or coffee can be added to your booking when you buy tickets or bought from staff on board. The windows open. See couchette car numbering plan.
If you want sole occupancy of a whole 6-berth compartment for 2-6 people, you'll see a price for a private compartment when you book.
Another 6-berth standard couchette compartment, this one slightly wider with two windows. Cars are of several types.
Route map
Tips: Luggage, bikes, pets...
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Sleeper or couchette?
For solo travellers on a budget, a couchette is fine, you get a flat bunk in a safely lockable compartment and can sleep just as well as in a sleeper - never travel in just a seat, always book a couchette or sleeper on a night train for both comfort and security.
If you're tall, a lower berth is better as the upper berth support chains can get in the way of your feet and head.
For families, a 5 berth couchette compartment is ideal, you're all together in one compartment and can have a blast - bring a bottle of wine for mum & dad. Paying more for two 2-berth compartments in the sleeping-car probably isn't worth it (unless you've older kids and mum & dad want a break). There are whole-compartment rates for sole occupancy of a 5 berth compartment, or you can add phantom children to your booking to fill a 5 berth compartment.
The sleeping-car has a quieter, more civilised atmosphere, and it's obviously the best option for solo travellers & couples not budget-limited. Some families and many solo travellers prefer it: A bed in a shared 3-bed single-gender sleeper doesn't cost that much more than a bunk in a 5-berth couchette compartment. In the sleeper, you get a proper fully-made-up bed with duvet.
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Berth numbering
It often confuses people when they get berths 21 & 25 and think they aren't together in the same 2-berth sleeper compartment. Of course they are! See how sleepers are numbered. See how couchettes are numbered.
In the 5-berth couchettes, the middle berth number on one side isn't used. However, in some compartments the left hand side has 2 berths, the right hand side 3, in other compartments it's the other way round.
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Luggage
You take your luggage with you into your compartment and simply stick it on the luggage racks above the window, in the big recess over the door to the corridor, or on the floor. Nobody weighs it, measures it, or worries about how much you take. More about luggage on European trains.
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Bikes
Bikes are carried on the European Sleeper for €19. They are carried in a large bike compartment in the seats car at one end of the train.
For bikes on Eurostar, see the bikes by train page. However, I recommend taking bikes on the bike-friendly Harwich-Hoek ferry and picking up the European Sleeper at Rotterdam.
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Dogs & other pets
Pets are carried on the sleeper free of charge, as long as you (and anyone with you) occupy a whole sleeper or couchette compartment.
Pets are not carried on Eurostar, but can be carried on the London-Amsterdam train-ferry-train service to pick up the sleeper in Rotterdam.
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Wheelchairs
Unfortunately, European Sleeper have not been able to get hold of the very few available couchette cars with wheelchair-accessible compartments, but longer term they want to add this facility.
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WiFi & power sockets
There's no WiFi, but mobile data reception works fine along most of the route. There are power sockets (European 2-pin type) in some of the couchette cars but not all, and not in the sleepers. I always travel with a powerbank.
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Food & drink on board
This sleeper to/from Venice will feature a dining-car, a real pleasure!
The European Sleeper couchette & sleeper attendants can sell snacks & drinks (tea, coffee, soft drinks, red & white wine, European Sleeper's excellent own brand of Weissbier, nachos, noodles) from a limited menu. Or bring a picnic and bottle of wine with you!
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Where to wait for your train
In Brussels, the Pullman Hotel bar makes the best VIP waiting room away from the hustle and bustle, it's an integral part of the station.
In Rotterdam, for dinner or a beer before taking the sleeper, try Kaapse Maria (www.kaapsebrouwers.nl) for craft beer and good pub food, 9 minutes walk from Rotterdam Centraal, see walking map. Check opening hours, it's open Monday & Friday but closed Wednesdays. Alternatively, Le Nord (lenord.nl), La Cazuela & Dunya are all good bistros in a quiet road 5 minutes north of the station, see walking map.
Always check up to date departure times using int.bahn.de, I suggest using plain BERLIN rather then Berlin Hbf.
About European Sleeper
European Sleeper isn't just an ordinary company, it's on a mission to bring sleeper trains back. Founded by two entrepreneurs with a passion for sleepers, Elmer van Buuren and Chris Engelsman, it has required a huge effort battling railway bureaucracy to get this train up and running. It's been particularly difficult to source serviceable rolling stock as there's so little available for hire, but they've done it and they now have a comfortable and operationally robust train even though it inevitably uses older rolling stock. They are now working on expanding the offer and in the longer term funding and sourcing the modern rolling stock that this service deserves. Let's give them our support!
I was privileged to be at the launch reception on 26 May 2023 at the Pullman Hotel at Brussels Midi. On stage are European Sleeper founders Elmer van Buuren (left) and Chris Engelsman (centre) with Dutch-American comedian Greg Shapiro hosting the event. Photographed by the author.